Selig's tough Trop talk, and Tino's task ...

Baseball commissioner Bud Selig has only attended one game at Tropicana Field as far as anyone knows, and that was in June 2004, before all the improvements by the Stuart Sternberg-led ownership group.
But that didn't stop Selig from bashing the Trop, in his bid to push the importance of the new stadium, in an interview with ESPN's Howard Bryant, which is excerpted below. And the way Selig answered the St. Pete/Tampa question is interesting, especially since the Rays have a lease with St. Petersburg through 2027.

Tampa Bay has been the league's success story in the first half, but it has not translated to better attendance. What is your level of concern for the future of baseball in Tampa?
Look, they're really pushing on a new ballpark. I think if they can get it done, it will really help them, no question about it. They've got a good club. They've done a great job scouting and drafting. Their attendance is up 4,500, but it's not enough. They can't make it in that ballpark. Have you been there?

Many times.
Do I need to tell you any more than that? And so, they need a new stadium. The demographics of the Tampa-St. Pete area are good enough for baseball.

On the St. Pete side, though?
Well, they're going to have to make that judgment. If they can get rights … I know there are people who think it needs to be on the Tampa side, but I'm going to leave that to (principal owner) Stu Sternberg. If they can get a new ballpark built, yes, I think they can be a very successful franchise.

Also, former Ray, longtime Yankee and Tampa favorite son Tino Martinez was chosen for an interesting assignment, managing the World team for the All-Star Futures game on July 13 at Yankee Stadium. Former big-league player and manager Davey Johnson will manage the U.S. team, a logical choice since he will also manage the U.S. Olympic team in China in August. Rosters for the teams will be announced June 26.

[Getty Images]

Comments

[Dr_Dug]

Steve.. the Rays arte going to sell marketing on the Sail... so that should cover everything......not! We build it....the Rays sell pieces of it to pay for it...the voters get the bill!

[Jim]

I wish that I had been here earlier so that perhaps I could get a response from MLM.

I thought he was 10, but then saw the link above and realize that he's actually a college graduate. God help us all. Comparing Tampa's downtown (ghost town) to St. Petersburg - the most dynamic in Florida is insane, I could go on about that - but, back to the ballpark: Selig has no room to talk, when he says "have you been there?" most of us can say YES. On the other hand, he had only been there once in the franchise's first 10 yrs of existence, so what he says on the subject doesn't hold water.

[Sal]

St. Pete people are idiots that don't deserve a sports team. More the team to tampa , the "tampons" are better sports fans then any of the senior citizens that live in St Pete.

[mm]

I honestly don't care if we get a new stadium or remodel the Trop. I enjoy sitting in the a/c and never worry about a rainout. The location makes the Trop the EASIEST stadium toget to and leave from in the entire bay area. I just want to see people get down there and support your team! Nowhere in the rest of the league will you find a cheaper way to watch a game. You people are focusing on the wrong thing with all this stadium talk. Turn your attention to this young, exciting team turn this thing around!

[George]

I get the impression from a lot of the comments the last month or so about stadium topics is that St. Pete residents want the Rays to leave. I'm willing to bet that most of those are retirees or other folks that moved here from out of state. Well, as a native Floridian, I'm sick of these people. They come down here and insist upon pressing their will to the rest of us. They have no real loyalties to the area. That's why they don't give two s**** if the team leaves and makes the city look like a second rate town. If they wanted to sit in airconditioning all the time, whey move here. All they do is suck up resources, barely add anything to the economy, all the while complaining about everything they come across. The Rays leave St. Petersburg? How bout you northerners leave the state?

[Dr_Dug]

And by the way Native (assclown)....they need to pay cause it's considered thier office and its HOW THEY MAKE MONEY!!

[steve oneal]

Tyler have you looked at the new stadium proposal? The sail would only shade the stands, NOT THE FIELD. There could still be rained out games!

[Dr_Dug]

Native..good answer!...Why should I pay for a stadium I don't own...or hardly use?

[Dr_Dug]

QB1...you said it again..." This is the first year the Rays have put a winning product on the field and the city of ST.Pete"... And how mch did it cost..? 200 million! What about next year? And after that? Your mouth moves but your not making any points. How can you prove the numbers match and winning is guaranteed? And how do you pay back that much money(The Rays still owe on the Trop)?

[Native]

why would the Rays even pay for a stadium they will not own??? $150 million is a generous offer...

[steve oneal]

You people on here that keep saying SUPPORT your team and go to the games. DON'T TELL ME HOW AND WHERE TO SPEND MY MONEY! If the minority(the attendance and all the polls prove this) of you that support the rays and a new stadium want it so bad, then just send the rays all YOUR money and do it with PRIVATE financing and leave the rest of the taxpayers alone. And to jc, all the events that are held at rjs benefit the Glazers. They get the first 1 million $ and any amount over that they split 50/50 with city and county. only two events other than bucs games have gone slightly higher since rjs was built. If the bucs PAID rent for the 10 games they play and the county(OWNERS OF RJS) got the revenue from the other events it would be an economic plus for county. Maybe if these pro teams paid property taxes it would be an economic plus. But they DON'T. If baseball or any pro sports team can't make money off of its product(BASEBALL, FB,BB HOCKEY etc) without all the government subsidies, maybe they should change their business model.

[Dr_Dug]

QB1...My PLAN will work...so your willing to pay for it? Great..... I need the two-thirds of $750,000 to get started.....And remember...Unless you're uneducated enough to the point where your ignorance blinds you and all you can say is no, no, no...you should say yes!!!

[QB1]

Attendance is up by 4500 already this year. As the Rays continue to win and capitalize on their fan base it will only continue to grow. Same thing happened for the Bucs and the Lighting. Is that enough precedent for you Dig Dug?

This is the first year the Rays have put a winning product on the field and the city of ST.Pete has an opportunity to capitalize on it for years to come. Look at it as a partnership and not some half assed conspiracy that the Rays are using to "take your money"! (as you stated earlier)

[Tom]

I had to go to the MLM link to see how someone could be so STUPID.

Now you know Yankee/Gator Fan

http://www.sbnation.com/users/mlmintampa

[Dr_Dug]

Patrick..your dead wrong! According to your math...every city needs to spend ONE BILLION DOLLARS every 20 years to play Baseball and win.( Excluding millions spent for upgrades and up-keep) Where are all the people that vowed the Trop was a good thing? That it would bring the "money"? I guess they were wrong and it only cost the taxpayers 200 million dollars, so they want to try again?.... You....are an ASSCLOWN FOOL to believe them!!!

[QB1]

Interesting....plans usually start from ideas and than materialize from there. This is usually done through the art of conversation and negotiation.

Unless you're uneducated enough to the point where your ignorance blinds you and all you can say is no, no, no.

[Dr_Dug]

Hey QB1.........If St Pete wants to make an investment....then they can build me a new $750,000.00 home, pay for two-thirds of it..... and by raising the tax on the bigger home, they'll make more revenue and thier money back!! In fact, St.Pete can build $450,000,000.00 worth of new homes and tax them too if they need to increase thier revenue! If the Rays can try...why not me? The deals are similiar...

[Patrick]

People are not blaming the right people here. The city of St.Pete built that stadium ten years before they had a team. So that stadium is like twenty years old. It is not surprising the team wants a new stadium to keep up with the other teams financially. If this is voted down St.Pete will go right back into the toilet. Guaranteed.

[Dr_Dug]

QB1...you can't read assclown. They admitted they have a parking problem.....so what are you smoking? And where's the guarantee of payback and attendance? And what "formula" are they using to prove thier plan and how can they achieve thier goal?

[Dr_Dug]

Tyler at 5:10...you an absolute ASSCLOWN! You not only sound ridiculous....you make no sense! The Rays DON'T have a plan! They have an idea!! If they have a plan...then where will the people park? EXACTLY..they don't have a plan.....or a clue!! Just a crazy idea that they can spend my money!!

[QB1]

Try to follow along Dig Dug. This isn't rocket science. All you have to do is read the development plan that has been proposed.

I can see it's still raining where you are.

[Guy Gratton]

Okay people, a little less emotion and negativity from both sides. We need to spend money to make money, on the other hand, the economy is in the crapper and people are losing jobs. Let's compromise and offer a major renovation of the current facility with some conditions and see if we can move forward.

[Dr_Dug]

Hey Selig...why don't you just pump steroids into the old Trop to "PUMP UP Attendance?"

[Bob]

If it's good for baseball then it must be good for the community? Is it possible that this isn't true? Ask some homeowner about to lose his/her home because of high taxes/insurance or some renter paying 50% of their income for rent if they want to kick in some money for a new stadium. If Selig wants it let Selig pay for it.

[Dr_Dug]

QB1...what the hell are you talking about?

[rick]

Selig speaks with a forked tounge when he knows what hes talking about ,when he don't, he just reads off an owners cue card.When hes down here the closest he gets to the trop is the Vinoy 4 star resort.When the trop lease is out we can build a stadium,in the mean time start saving now for it putting the money in a fund.If they leave before 2027 there will be millions in the fund to spend on roads ect.. or just reduce taxes whatever we want to do with it.It might sound stupid but we would be better off not having a ball team in this area and having a few major leauge teams spring training camps back here and get a following from a few more big market areas.But a ballpark at the chosen waterfront location was a dumber idea in reality.

[Dr_Dug]

If St Pete wants to make an investment....then they can build me a new $750,000.00 home, pay for two-thirds of it..... and by raising the tax on the bigger home, they'll make more revenue and thier money back!! So all you new ballpark wannabes...give me YOUR money to spend so the city makes more money!!!
And Ryan..at 3:58...your an AssClown!! Do your math......how many tickets do you need to sell to pay back $450,000,000.00? And remember assclown....450 million today is 750 million in a few years! Thats alot of All-star tickets being sold!! To bad the new stadium isn't an All-star idea!! NO NEW WATERFRONT STADIUM!!!

[QB1]

Why would a new ball park ruin a good thing Kenneth? The entire plan will only help add to it. More attractions equal more boost to the local economy. More shops, retailers, jobs, etc. Not to mention the extra business that will be generated for the business owners who are already there. More attractions simply means more reasons to visit the city and spend money. Any worth while business owner will see that.

Why can't some of you people come in from the rain already?

[Tyler]

First off idiots it is not totaly an outdoor stadium. Games would never be rainned out and there will be shade provided. I don't understand why people complain about watching games in warm weather. It is the damn summer everything you do outside will be warm. Also, the Rays only play sunday day games. Besides that there aren't many day games. If your voting no just because you like AC your a total idiot.

[steve oneal]

If it is such a GREAT DEAL and will make SO MUCH MONEY, then how come the team doesn't do it all on their own and reap all the PROFIT? I guess they want to share the wealth with all the taxpayers. Their pitch sounds like the real estate seminars, MAKE A MILLION DOLLARS TODAY with my proven programs. The promised economic development and all the new tax revenue promised when they built the trop NEVER materialized. What makes you think that it will happen this time?

[larry]

idiots in St. Pete and Pinellas county. Here is my guess: the city votes the stadium down. While this is happening, a suit is currently underway in Seattle about the Sonics leaving town and breaking their lease with the city. Precedent. Stu and his Wall Street gang, break the lease and move the team to a better location, i.e. Tampa. Now, the brilliant minds in Pinellas and St. Pete are left with a dome with no tenants, nobody to redevelop the site and their lovely Al Lang is still standing. So, the team leaves and they get nothing to show for it. Nice work. Idiots.

[Bobby Fenton]

People like Kenneth are entitled to their opinion. If their vision for their city is more along the lines of what Kenneth explained above, then that is their right.

But it should not come at the expense of holding back our baseball team. If you can't see that:

1) They need a new stadium

and

2) They are going to be playing somewhere else ten years from now, in St. Pete, Tampa, or otherwise...

then you're jus shortsighted. If St. Pete doesn't want this, let them go. Trying to stamp your feet and demanding they stay at te Trop until 2027 or whatever is asinine.

[billy craig]

Move it to Tampa already. St. Pete is a complete he11hole. The Trop is surrounded right now by what...housing projects and low-income retirement homes? Embarassing.

[Steven]

Listen don't try to have an intelligent conversation with someone from St. Pete. It is just not worth it. Many of them are too old to understand statistics. The point is St. Pete is a dead city and I don't just mean the people over 80. Vote NO if you want and stay a second rate city forever. There isn't even spring training in your city anymore. There is a reason why the team is named Tampa Bay even though it's in St. Pete. Because putting your city's name on anything would be a disgrace. Just keep trying to destroy the best thing that ever happened to your city.

[jodi]

i live in new port richey. the ride to the Trop is a breeze. i've been to more games in Fl. then when i lived in NY. i enjoy the consistant temp. in the trop. if it's raining here i don't have to second guess if a games going to be canceled as the outdoor stadium. i don't have to worry about lightening strikes that happen without warning. will i go to a outdoor stadium where the temp. will probably hover around 85 - 92 degrees? i think not. i'll spend my money on a movie ticket in an AC theater.

[jodi]

i live in new port richey. the ride to the Trop is a breeze. i've been to more games in Fl. then when i lived in NY. i enjoy the consistant temp. in the trop. if it's raining here i don't have to second guess if a games going to be canceled as the outdoor stadium. i don't have to worry about lightening strikes that happen without warning. will i go to a outdoor stadium where the temp. will probably hover around 85 - 92 degrees? i think not. i'll spend my money on a movie ticket in an AC theater.

[mm]

Keep making excuses why you won't come to the games and watch this team move to ORLANDO idiots!

[Kenneth]

Who cares if St. Pete becomes a "major city"? Major city just means more crime and traffic. I for one like St. Pete how it is - sure there are things I'd change - we need to focus our attention on change south of Central for sure. But downtown St. Pete is great - especially for the tens of thousands of outdoor active folks who reside there and love spending their weekends downtown by the water.

St. Pete's downtown is quaint - good parking, great restaurants, and some beautiful architecture. Why spoil a good thing?

[Joe K.]

LET'S GET BUILDING A NEW BALLPARK!

[mm]

You people are clueless! First of all, Pinellas residents have been supporting the TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS and the TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING for years now! Don't think that the attendance is solely Hillsborough residents. Tampa Bay is ALL surrounding counties. The Bucs and the Lightning are as much a part of Pinellas, Pasco, Haernando, Polk, Bradenton, & Sarasota as they are Hillsborough. As for blaming St pete residents for lack of attendance at the Trop, well, All I am hearing is Tampa residents whining that its too far to drive. I go to at least one game every series and am surrounded by residents from Pinellas, Sarasota, Bradenton, and even towns on the other side of the state! Quit your crying and go support YOUR team!

[QB1]

ST.Pete is closer to being a major US city than Tampa? Rex....you really need to get out of the right hand lane with your turn signal on and look around once in a while. This is the ignorant mind set that will keep ST. Pete from ever reaching it's potential of being a major US city.

[Bobby Fenton]

The shortsightedness of so many of you is appalling. All of these St. Pete people get so defensive about this stuff, and are now taking this opportunity to simply rip Tampa. While I think it's great that you are all so in love with your place over there, it's not so great that it isn't better off with a major league baseball team rather than without.

LOOK AT WHAT YOU HAVE IN FRONT OF YOU. The more I hear people saying things like, "We don't need the Rays anyway, we have beaches" etc., etc., the more I wonder about the citizenry of St. Pete and the less I wonder why you have the reputation you do. It's called progess, people.

I will be the first to admit that while Tampa's downtown has improved, it could use more improvement. I'm also smart enough to know that hypothetially, a BALLPARK WOULD HELP TO DO THAT. However, that isn't what's on the table here. A ballpark for St. Pete is.

Yes, we are one area and we should all work together, but I think that if you sre a citizen of St. Pete who really wants to see the city make "The Leap", then you are absolutely out of your mind not to want this.

I am not ripping St. Pete's downtown. I've heard it's nice. I never go there myself, except to, guess what, GO TO THE TROP (which as we all know isn't actually downtown but near it). I am not alone. Baseball brings people, and repeat after me slowly - PEOPLE - ARE - GOOD. Either way, though, don't tell me everything is so great that you're better off losing a major league franchise. That is incredibly dense and it is indicative of the same stuff we've heard so many malcontents in St. Pete spout so often over the years.

Good try ripping Tampa, guys, but you all know that isn't what this is about.

[Gilbert]

Regardless of what Bud Selig says, he is a mouthpiece for the filthy rich baseball team owners. Why the need for a new stadium is of paramount concern? Why have Selig only began to champion this idea? Simple, in the meeting with the owners Winter of '05 Selig, and the, then Rays owners was looking for help to dump the Rays, as the COO of baseball was quoted as saying, "something has to be done to make to DRays more attractive"! I guess this is what he was saying. It is an economic struggle out here. I, like many others do no find this economy to be on the upswing anytime soon. Yet the taxes, for this athletic junket and the appeasement of Sir Selig's request would certainly have an immediate affect on taxes and families whom are not above the lowest level of poverty. The pristine settings along the Bayfront will forever, be destroyed! Is this what we really want? Look, we build a new stadium and the Rays bottom out this year and go back to stinking up the place AGAIN? We would have thrown good money after bad. Let them be winners for at least 3 consecutive years, then ask for a new stadium. We have stuck by them when they were losers, so if they want to leave let them go! Just like a marriage, if a spouse wants to leave and haven't shown you a willing ness to compromise, let-them-GO!

[Robert]

Who says that the Rays do not bring in out of town money? I live in Hernando county, and the only time I step foot in that town is to go to a baseball game. My family makes a day of it, going to local eating establishments, checking out the shops at the pier, and strolling through the parks on the waterfront(not that I ever see many others doing that) People make a big deal about the beaches in St. Pete, but are there any beaches in city limits besides that tiny one right next to the pier? Face it St. Pete, without baseball, the rest of the bay area won't have much reason to go there. Then it will wither and die in a few years, much like most of it's residents.

[JC]

Economic impact studies have shown that stadiums by themselves do not bring in new revenue. However, when part of a holistic package they can exert a significant impact. For example, if used to reshape the image of downtown St. Petersburg as an up and coming area for young professionals (i.e. no longer a 55+ community), the subsidy could engender economic success, with a benefit far outweighing the cost. Another way to recoup the subsidy is through events. This is the route Raymond James Stadium has taken. Superbowl anyone?

[David]

BS selig hasn't been to the Trop. In fact, most of the people who bad-mouth the Trop have never been there. It's gotten pretty nice lately; I've been to way crappier stadiums than the Trop. Stop bad-mouthing the PIT!

[Mark]

Do you really think all of these folks from Tampa will go to the games if the stadium is built over there? NOT!!! Grow up people, support the team and quit acting like a child.

[QB1]

Hey bushknockdown.....why don't you take your lousy attitude, stick it in your pie hole, and go pound sand.

[Rex]

MLM- Are you serious? Do you really consider Tampa a major US city? Have you been Anywhere? Do you even know what a major US city looks like and has to offer? I am not saying St. Pete is one but it is a lot closer than Tampa.

[sophie]

mlm- just where would you put a park in Tampa? In the land that turns into a ghosttown after dark-downtown Tampa?Seriously, there is nothing to do in downtown Tampa afterdark unless you go to the Channelside which is incredibly cliche. Or would you prefer stripbar central next to the Bucs stadium. That has got to be one of the worst neighborhoods for a stadium in the whole NFL. BTW- The data that makes "Tampa" the 13th largest media market actually for "Tampa Bay" and includes St. Petersburg and Clearwater. In actual population numbers, Tampa is not even in the top 50 for largest metropolitan areas in the US.